NDP gathers for annual convention
Party proposing economic stimulus bill that would provide CBRM with $50 million a year for each of the next three years
This weekend, Nova Scotia’s New Democratic Party (NDP) will gather for our annual convention here in Sydney.
As the MLA for Cape Breton Centre, I am pleased to welcome my fellow New Democrats to our beautiful island. It’s critical to have our provincial politicians take the time to visit Cape Breton, and I know that our team doesn’t just show up. The NDP truly understands the needs and challenges of Cape Bretoners and is willing to fight with us and for us.
Although I was elected just a year ago in May 2017, Cape Breton Centre has been well represented by the NDP for 50 of the last 80 years. Cape Breton Centre was the first place to put its trust in the NDP, electing Douglas MacDonald in 1939. Truly, Cape Breton is the birthplace of Nova Scotia’s NDP - so it’s important that we don’t lose touch.
We know that Cape Breton is struggling. We face some serious challenges. Not only has our economy been declining for years, but this is causing us to lose thousands of our people, and especially our youth, to outmigration. Child poverty in Cape Breton is staggering, with one in three kids living below the poverty line in Sydney-Victoria. Wait times for access to mental health services are out of control, hospital closures are all too frequent and the mortality rates in Cape Breton hospitals are some of the highest in Canada.
Again and again, our NDP Caucus has called on the Stephen McNeil government to do something about these problems, but they continue to ignore Cape Breton. While the Liberals do nothing, the NDP is here, showing up, and making a difference.
As Cape Bretoners, we know that our communities are resilient and filled with the spirit of generosity. But, we also know that we can’t go on like this. The NDP knows it too. That’s why we’ve proposed an economic stimulus bill to help rectify our provincial fiscal imbalance and provide CBRM with $50 million a year, each year, for the next three years.
The McNeil government is fine with allowing things to get worse in Cape Breton. The NDP knows that is not an option. We have to invest in the people who live here.
Cape Bretoners deserve more from our government. That’s why this weekend I hope you’ll join me in welcoming the NDP as we work towards a better, brighter future for our island.
“We know that Cape Breton is struggling. We face some serious challenges. Not only has our economy been declining for years, but this is causing us to lose thousands of our people, and especially our youth, to outmigration.”